International hospitality leader joins Board of McKeever Hotels

Stephen McNally, one of Ireland’s most prominent and experienced hospitality sector experts, has been appointed to the Board of McKeever Hotels..

With a career spanning 40 years in the tourism and hospitality industry, including leadership roles at three global hotel groups, Stephen brings significant strategic and commercial counsel to the family-owned McKeever group which is headquartered in Antrim, and operates seven properties across Northern Ireland and Donegal.

As founding Director and Deputy Chief Executive of the Dalata Hotel Group (2007 to 2022) Stephen was responsible for shaping, driving and scaling the business, which today operates 57 hotels under the Clayton and Maldron hotel brands.

Prior to Dalata Stephen played a key role in the expansion of the Jury’s Doyle Hotel Group, including the acquisition of 20 Jury’s Inns across the UK, culminating in his appointment to Group General Manager for 34 hotels across Ireland, UK and the USA.

In his early career he also gained extensive experience with the Ramada Hotel Group, completing their Management Training Development Programme and working for their properties across Germany and the UK for over six years.

Most recently, and after retiring from Dalata in 2022, Stephen founded SERLs Hospitality. As Chief Executive he has successfully leveraged 40 years of proven industry experience and insight, to provide specialist consultancy, advisory and hotel management services to clients across Ireland and the UK.

In addition to his operational experience, Stephen is a non-executive director of Tourism Ireland and chairs the Tourism Partnership Board (TPB) on behalf of the Minister for the Economy in Northern Ireland. He also served as President of the Irish Hotels Federation from 2014 to 2016.

Recognising tourism’s potential to drive change, Stephen said: “I’ve been embedded in the sector for over 40 years, so I understand its value and appreciate how it has contributed so positively to Ireland’s economic growth. I now look forward to bringing this experience to McKeever Hotels and the wider sector in Northern Ireland.

“Tourism success is all about people, passion and commitment and I see these reflected in the McKeever culture. The Board is open, honest and focused on its ambitious growth strategy and I look forward to helping this great team capitalise on its success to date and also seize the many opportunities ahead.”

Welcoming Stephen to the Board, Eddie McKeever, Managing Director of McKeever Hotels added:

“We’ve come a long way in our 40-year history, particularly over the last decade, and the journey continues. Our current five year strategy clearly identifies growth, performance and sustainability as our three key priorities and we know Stephen will help us achieve this by bringing his external perspective, global brand experience and big-picture thinking to the team. We’re really delighted to have him on board.”